Cihuacōātl
/siwaˈkoːaːtɬ/noun
A Nahuatl name and title associated with an Aztec mother goddess and with a high-ranking imperial official.
Did you know?Cihuacōātl was both a divine figure linked with childbirth and a title for the second-highest ruler in the Aztec Empire.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Uto-Aztecan
PUA
*cua
“An ancestral form associated with serpent or snake terminology; the precise reconstruction is debated.”
Classical Nahuatl
Nahuatl
cihuātl
“Woman or female.”
Classical Nahuatl
Nahuatl
coātl
“Snake or serpent.”
Pre-Columbian Mexico
Nahuatl
Cihuacōātl
“A female-serpent deity and title connected with childbirth, earth, and rulership.”
16th Century
Spanish
Cihuacoatl
“A recorded Indigenous divine name and political title in early colonial accounts.”
Modern English
English
Cihuacōātl
“A proper name referring to the Aztec deity, title, or associated mythological figure.”
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